my weekend in one photo
Huatulco is in the town of La Crucecita, on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca. It is about an 8 hour bus ride from Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca. The bus ride itself was an adventure.
Eight hours riding on a bus through the mountains of Oaxaca. Full speed. Lots of rocks, lots of twists, lots of turns. I’m 5’8″ so the seats were also pretty small for me, but probably fine for the average Oaxaqueno, since the people are shorter here than in the States. (I am constantly reminded of how tall I am after having anything more than a five minute conversation with a Oaxaqueno.) We were all rolling around in our seats and bouncing up and down throughout the trip. Some wise young lads took dramamine, or a pill that combats motion sickness by knocking you out.
Before the bus left, an employee of ADO (the bus company) walked onto the bus and filmed everyone’s face. I got on the bus in middle of his little movie and shrieked, quickly pulling my laptop in front of my face. (It was 10 o’clock at night and I was more prepared to sleep for eight hours than to star in a movie.) Fun fact: Some places record the passengers on their buses before the bus leaves in case of a missing persons case, or in case an image surfaces of a wanted person. I didn’t know that, but at least everyone got a good laugh.
We arrived at the Huatulco station early in the morning and took cabs to La Luz de Luna, a beautiful villa off of La Playa Arrocita. The grounds keeper let us in and we slept soundly in beautiful bedrooms furnished with wooden chests and drawers, white sheets and curtains, large windows, and air conditioning. Oaxaca City has dry heat, but the coast is humid. Take a minute and reflect on how happy the discovery of air conditioning made us.
our honeymoon suite-esque bedroom
The next morning we headed to the beach. I stopped near the edge of the mountain (our villa was near the top of a mountain) to view the Pacific Ocean. As you can see in the pictures, the view is comparable to any view you’d see in a pamphlet for paradise.
I must say that the entire weekend was surreal. In the midst of such a peaceful environment, I was finally still and took the opportunity to reflect on where I was, where I came from, and what may lay ahead of me. I could hardly grasp the extent of how fortunate I am. A loving family, a world-class education, great friends and loved ones, international travel, health, mentors, a home I can always go back to, I could go on and on…and I am grateful to God, my family, and my loved ones for guiding and supporting me every day of my life. Anything is possible, yet here I am.
He carries me.
We walked down to the beach for breakfast. We ate shrimp, octopus, guacamole, and other dishes that feature delicious coastal Oaxacan cuisine. After applying liberal amounts of sunscreen and taking really cute brunch photos we headed into the water.
The beach was clean. I think that is an important fact. Unlike the ‘beaches’ off of Lake Michigan in Chicago, there weren’t cigarette butts, wrappers, or forgotten socks in the sand. The tides were mild and created a beautiful succession of foamy white water near the coast that became a deep, yet bright blue farther out into sea.
With the help of snorkels and goggles I saw some beautiful blue fish and various sea shells. Later on I rode a jet ski (for the first time ever!) It was exhilarating and a lot easier than I expected. That evening the gang went to Chadraui (the equivalent of Walmart) and bought groceries for dinner and breakfast. One of our travel buddies is now Mom because she spearheaded the villa reservations, communicated all of our needs with the villa owners, cooked us dinner and breakfast, and ensured that we were all present and well.
peace.
We had pasta for dinner, ice cream for dessert, and ended the night with a few drinks by the pool and a bunch of early 2000s jams on repeat. Very college, I know.
piscina
The next morning we ate eggs and pancakes for breakfast and drank mimosas before heading back to the beach. This time a group of us rode on a banana floaty connected to a speed boat. The drivers flipped us over three times, and we got some great pics! We drank coconut water from a fresh coconut and then ate the coconut flavored with a bit of lime and sea salt. All in all, it was yet another super relaxing day at the beach.
Our last few hours were spent by the pool. We went into town for a seafood dinner and everyone ordered delicious and photogenic meals. I got a seafood platter in a pineapple, another chica got a lobster smothered in tequila, and one chica got a cooked fish-eyeballs, skeleton, everything included.
dinner!
I took the motion sickness pills for the bus ride back and slept like a baby 80% of the time. The other 20% of the time I spent trying to fit a 5’8″ body into a 5’3″ space.
Upon our arrival in Oaxaca de Juarez, everyone bee lined to a cab. My roommate and I fell asleep the second we shut our doors and didn’t resurface until about 4 p.m.
Best. Weekend. Yet.
73 Aventuras 